[Absolute Heartthrob] Chapter 4

The first two seconds of the call were silent. By the third to fifth seconds, a female voice quickly passed through his ear: “Jiang Chizhou, I just crashed into the school beauty at the entrance…”

There was a two-second pause, followed by, “Oh, and your bike.”

By the tenth second, the call was cut off.

Jiang Chizhou rushed to the school entrance, breathing heavily as he searched for her. It wasn’t hard to find—a crowd of students had gathered about 50 meters outside the gate, making it quite obvious.

Three bicycles of different colors were scattered haphazardly on the ground, and the people standing beside them formed a triangle. The blazing sun cast a golden glow on everyone, making the scene seem peaceful, though it only heightened the tension.

Pushing through the crowd, Jiang Chizhou strode in. “What happened?”

The two who had been arguing at the gate the day before now stood face to face. Yan Xi, having set aside her usual animosity, clutched at Jiang Chizhou’s shirt with her slender, pale fingers. “I made a mistake.”

Glancing down, Jiang Chizhou noticed her hand tugging at his shirt like a little claw. Even her way of acting cute was different from others. He shifted his gaze away, not wanting to look at her. “Stop wasting time.”

Surprisingly, Yan Xi didn’t talk back this time. Instead, she simply explained, gesturing with her hands, “I was coming from this direction, and the school beauty was coming from that way. I tried to brake but couldn’t stop in time, so I accidentally crashed into her…”

She twisted her arm to indicate the girl standing beside her.

The school beauty was still wearing her long white dress, looking fresh and elegant. When she cycled past the school gates earlier, she attracted admiring glances from onlookers.

She loved the feeling of being praised, and the envious, admiring looks made her feel happy and satisfied. Even under the scorching sun, she maintained a goddess-like poise.

But then, she ran into Yan Xi!

As the school beauty came out of the gate, still smiling and graceful, she spotted a bicycle speeding toward her. Though she pressed the brakes, the other bike came rushing toward her like a maniac, and in the end, it turned into a “traffic accident.”

Both riders fell, and the school beauty tumbled to the ground with a shocked, fragile expression.

Soon after, the person who had crashed into her came over to apologize. The school beauty put on an expression of grievance, but when she looked up and saw who it was, she was stunned. “It’s you?”

Of all people, the one who had ruined her perfect image turned out to be her romantic rival!

What had been admiring looks turned into ridicule. She couldn’t just let Yan Xi off that easily.

While the school beauty was shocked, Yan Xi was full of remorse. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. The brakes failed. Are you okay?”

Yan Xi had been riding bicycles since she was young and was usually very skilled. However, the brake failure caused this accident, and she felt genuinely guilty.

“Are you alright?” Yan Xi didn’t immediately recognize the school beauty and even extended her hand to help her up. But the school beauty refused.

Tears welled up in the school beauty’s eyes as she kept repeating that she was hurt, her clothes were dirty, and her bike was damaged, putting on a thoroughly pitiful act.

It wasn’t until later that Yan Xi remembered this was the school beauty she had seen during the summer break.

If the school beauty had handled the situation reasonably, Yan Xi would have taken full responsibility and offered compensation. But the beauty was clearly dragging things out, trying to make a scene. So, Yan Xi raised her phone and pointed it at her.

The school beauty instantly went quiet, her voice still trembling. “What are you doing?”

“I think you look pretty when you cry, so I’m recording a video for you.” Yan Xi moved the camera like a professional photographer, guiding her, “Yes, that’s it, keep crying, just like that.”

The school beauty: “…”

Who could keep crying after that?

As murmurs from the onlookers began to rise, the school beauty quickly wiped her tears and moved to pick up her bicycle, only to find it was indeed broken.

She demanded compensation, but when Yan Xi checked her pockets, all she had was ten yuan—nowhere near enough.

Frustrated, she scratched her head and thought of Jiang Chizhou.

A quick, ten-second phone call later, no one knew what would happen, but Yan Xi remained as calm as ever. “Wait a bit longer, I’ll definitely compensate you.”

Her calling her “school beauty” seemed to please the girl, who adjusted her dress and introduced herself, “My name is Mu Qingqing.”

Well, that name matched her pure image.

While waiting, Xiao Ran leaned in close and whispered, “Sis, what are we going to do?”

Yan Xi turned her head slightly and shielded her mouth with her hand. “I don’t know, let’s just wait.”

If all else failed, she would have to call her mom for help.

Thankfully, Jiang Chizhou proved reliable and soon arrived. He became her lifeline, and she clung to him. “Jiang Chizhou, lend me some money.”

After hearing the whole story, Jiang Chizhou calmed down, his previously furrowed brows smoothing out.

Seeing her pleading expression, he smirked and removed her hand from his shoulder. “You think I’ll just lend you money like that? How does that make me look? What’s our relationship that I should lend you money?”

Yan Xi thought seriously. “Mortal enemies?”

“You’d better sell yourself to pay off the debt.” He gave a cold laugh and started to walk away.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Yan Xi quickly grabbed him and, with a pout, began to plead, “Zhou Zhou, you wouldn’t be so heartless as to watch your cute neighbor be crushed under debt, would you?”

“I would.”

“…”

“I’m a cold-hearted guy.”

“…”

“We’re enemies.”

“Brother, brother, you’re my dear brother,” she practically clung to him.

Their naturally close behavior felt like knives stabbing into the school beauty’s heart. She gritted her teeth and decided to keep things formal. “Yan Xi, have you two finished discussing? It’s really hot out here!”

Annoyed, Yan Xi immediately turned to Jiang Chizhou and complained, “Did you hear that? She’s yelling at me.”

The implication was clear: hurry up and lend me the money!

Jiang Chizhou snorted. “Pathetic.”

He placed a broad hand on her head and pushed her to the side before stepping forward to negotiate with the school beauty. The issue was quickly resolved.

After the school beauty left and the crowd dispersed, Jiang Chizhou crossed his arms and indicated for Yan Xi to pick up the bikes.

There were three bikes on the ground. With the school beauty gone, only two remained, including a pink one that Yan Xi had ridden over.

Xiao Ran stood quietly by Yan Xi’s side. She had been anxious earlier, apologizing on behalf of her cousin, but her voice had been so soft that it was barely noticeable.

The school beauty had only targeted Yan Xi, ignoring Xiao Ran completely. Yan Xi, preoccupied with resolving the situation, didn’t want her cousin to be dragged into it either, so Xiao Ran had been overlooked for a long time.

Now that the conflict was over, Yan Xi finally remembered her cousin. “Ran Ran, is your bike okay?”

Xiao Ran shook her head. She hadn’t fallen earlier, but after seeing Yan Xi’s crash, her own bike had toppled over in the chaos.

As Yan Xi lifted her bike and tested the brakes, something didn’t feel right. She asked, “Jiang Chizhou, is your bike’s brake broken?”

“Who told you to ride my bike?” he retorted instead of answering.

Yan Xi explained, “I remembered this morning that my bike was in for repairs. I ran into your mom, and she said you had an extra bike I could use.”

“I don’t remember giving my mom a key.”

“She didn’t have one, but I did!” Yan Xi pulled a key ring from her pocket and dangled it in front of him.

Right, he remembered now. Yan Xi had once stolen the key from him, and he’d let it slide.

“The brake is broken, but my mom didn’t know,” he said. He had already gotten a new bike, and the old one was locked away, but somehow Yan Xi had ended up using it. Luckily, nothing serious happened.

His eyes scanned her from head to toe before he finally asked, “Did you fall?”

Yan Xi shrugged casually. “Didn’t feel a thing. I just want to know how much I owe for the damages.”

“Five hundred,” he replied.

“Five! Five hundred!” Yan Xi’s eyes widened in despair. Grabbing his sleeve, she pretended to wipe her eyes. “Just sell me off to pay the debt.”

Yan Xi’s family lived comfortably. Her parents had stable jobs, and they owned several properties thanks to a redevelopment project. While her mom never skimped on her living expenses, she was strict with her allowance, afraid of her developing wasteful habits.

Jiang Chizhou brushed her hand away with a look of mild disgust. “Stop the act. You owe me five hundred yuan. Not a cent less.”

Her fake sobbing stopped abruptly, and Yan Xi switched tactics. “No way. Your bike’s brakes failed, so you’re responsible too.”

Jiang Chizhou raised an eyebrow. “So I

’m taking the blame again?”

Sensing that she was pushing her luck, Yan Xi quickly shook her head. “I wouldn’t dream of making you suffer alone. Let’s split it 50/50.”

Jiang Chizhou almost laughed from how ridiculous she was. “Thanks for your kindness.”

Putting on a sweet smile, Yan Xi gently brushed the dust off his shoulder. “You’re welcome. I’m very reasonable.”

He snorted and mercilessly crushed her last bit of hope. “If you short me even one cent, I’ll tell your mom.”

Yan Xi: “…”

That would mean another lecture from her mom, Zhao Qiujing.

Defeated, she tried one last time. “Zhou Zhou, don’t you feel bad for me?”

Jiang Chizhou: “I feel bad for the bike.”

Yan Xi: “…”

Fuming, she dug out all the money she had and shoved it into his hand. “Jiang Chizhou, we’re done! I’m cutting ties with you!”

He laughed. “Did we ever have ties?”

Beside them, Xiao Ran stood quietly, her face slightly pale.

Yan Xi’s bike had broken because she had been teaching Xiao Ran how to ride it a few days ago. If not for her, Yan Xi wouldn’t have needed to borrow Jiang Chizhou’s bike, and the whole mess wouldn’t have happened.

Five hundred yuan…
If Yan Xi couldn’t afford it, how could she?

Xiao Ran opened her mouth to speak but hesitated, afraid to interrupt. It wasn’t until Yan Xi lifted her bike and said, “Ran Ran, let’s go home,” that she finally found her voice.

But before they could leave, Jiang Chizhou grabbed Yan Xi’s ponytail. “Wait for me.”

Before she could respond, Jiang Chizhou received a phone call.

The conversation lasted a while, but Yan Xi didn’t leave. She stood there, waiting patiently. Jiang Chizhou glanced at her occasionally, thinking that since she had been so well-behaved today, maybe he could ease her burden.

As he hung up, he heard her voice float over. “Zhou Zhou, try being a decent human, would you?”

Jiang Chizhou: “…”

After shutting off his phone, Jiang Chizhou suddenly changed his mind. He waved her over. “Come with me. I’ll cancel your debt if you do.”

The moment she heard the last part, Yan Xi, who had been dejected just moments ago, perked up and skipped over with little steps. “Where are we going?”

Seeing her eager face, Jiang Chizhou’s grin widened, a mischievous gleam in his eyes as he enunciated clearly:
“To set the rules!”